In robotically-assisted or telerobotic surgery, the surgeon typically operates a master controller to remotely control the motion of surgical instruments affixed to robotic arms positioned at the surgical site. The master controller is in a location that may be remote from the patient (e.g., across the operating room, in a different room or a completely different building from the patient). The master controller usually includes one or more hand input devices, which are coupled to the robotic arms holding the surgical instruments, and the master controller controls servo motors associated with the robotic arms for articulating the instruments at the surgical site. During the operation, the hand devices provide mechanical articulation and control of a variety of surgical instruments, coupled to the robotic arms, that each perform various surgical functions for the surgeon.
Current surgical robotic systems comprise either robot arms fastened to the side of an operating table at fixed locations or a robot arm fastened to a separate movable stand that can be positioned adjacent to the operating table. Disadvantages for current systems include complex manual setup procedures and undesirably long setup times prior to surgery, as well as the cable requirements to couple the robotic arms to the master controller. The presence of cabling can interfere with the movement of assistants about the operating table. For example, for current systems, placement of the table (and secured patient) within an imaging device is problematic while the robot arms are attached. Another disadvantage of current systems is that they are restricted to performing specific classes of surgical procedures for example laparoscopic operations and a different class necessitates another type of robotic system. For multiple surgical tasks in a specified region of the patient, current systems can require the undesirable manual repositioning and/or substitution of a replacement robotic system while the patient is resident on the table. Further disadvantages with current systems can include the need for re-registration and time consuming cable routing and robot positioning.